1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a heater apparatus in which a main heater and an auxiliary heater are coupled, and more particularly, to a heater apparatus capable of quickly heating by virtue of positive temperature coefficient (PTC) elements installed therein.
2. Description of Related Art
Vehicles are equipped with heater apparatuses for heating inside air. In cold winter when the temperature of outdoor air is very low, the indoor temperature of a vehicle is kept at room temperature, and vehicles focus on heating until indoor temperature reaches a temperature at which passengers feel comfortable.
FIG. 1 shows a conventional heater apparatus for a vehicle, in which an auxiliary heat 30 having PTC elements mounted thereon is installed at the rear surface of a main heater 10. However, since the size of the main heater 10 is different from that of the auxiliary heat 30, there has been a temperature deviation in air flowing into a vehicle between the air which passes through the auxiliary heater and the air which passes through the main heater 10 only.
To overcome this drawback, Korean Patent Laid-open Publication No. 10-2007-0080656, entitled “An Assembly Method of Auxiliary Heater of Heat Core In Car,” discloses an assembly method of an auxiliary heater of a heater core in a car including bonding a pair of heat radiation fins integrally to a tube by braising, inserting an auxiliary heater between the pair of heat radiation fins to assemble them, and fixing the outer perimeter of a heater core with a band member, so as to increase contacting area between the auxiliary heater and the heat radiation fins. According to the method, heat transmission is facilitated. Further, since the space for installing the auxiliary heater may be replaced by the space for installing the heat radiation fins, the auxiliary heater can be assembled without any additional space, such that the manufacturing process can be simplified. However, the process disclosed in the document is so complicated.
Therefore, required is a heater apparatus for a vehicle capable of suppressing temperature deviation in the air flowing into a vehicle by way of allowing the air to pass through both of the main heater and the auxiliary heater, increasing fuel efficiency, reducing weight and cost of a vehicle, and being optimally packaged so as to enable standardized process.
The matters described as the related art have been provided only for facilitating the understanding of the background of the present invention and should not be construed as acknowledging them as the prior art already known to those skilled in the art.
The information disclosed in this Background of the Invention section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.